Nation, world briefs 1/25/17

Flint water falls below lead limit

LANSING, Mich. -- Flint's water system no longer has levels of lead exceeding the federal limit, a key finding Michigan state environmental officials said Tuesday is good news for a city whose 100,000 residents have been grappling with the man-made water crisis. The 90th percentile of lead concentrations in Flint was 12 parts per billion from July through December -- below the "action level" of 15 ppb, according to a letter from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality to Flint's mayor. It was 20 ppb in the previous six-month period. Flint's lead levels again are comparable to other similarly sized U.S. cities with older infrastructure, state officials said.

Minnesota governor has prostate cancer

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton announced Tuesday he has prostate cancer, revealing the diagnosis hours after collapsing while delivering his State of the State address the night before. The 69-year-old Democratic governor said he plans to finish the final two years of his term, during which he faces a unified GOP front after Republicans took control of the Senate and strengthened their House majority in November. Asked whether he felt up to the job, Dayton said: "I think I am. If I don't, I won't continue." He said he does not believe the recent cancer diagnosis and his fainting were linked.

Toll from Italy avalanche hits 17

FARINDOLA, Italy -- Hopes faded Tuesday any more survivors of the avalanche that buried an Italian resort hotel would be found after the death toll more than doubled to 17, with 12 people still unaccounted for. As Italy's central Abruzzo region and its rescue crews coped with the emergency, a second tragedy unfolded nearby when an emergency helicopter crashed at an Apennine ski resort, killing six people. The twin disasters, which followed a series of earthquakes and weeks of heavy snow, have brought the region to its knees. Thousands of people have been without electricity for over a week, and emergency crews have been working around the clock. The helicopter was ferrying an injured skier off the slopes of the Campo Felice ski area when it slammed into a mountainside shrouded in thick fog. Five crew members and the skier died.

Syria talks forge pledge for truce

ASTANA, Kazakhstan -- Russia, Iran and Turkey -- sponsors of talks in Kazakhstan between Syria and rebel factions -- pledged Tuesday to consolidate the country's nearly month-old cease-fire and set up a three-way mechanism to ensure compliance of all sides. At the conclusion of the two-day conference on Syria's nearly six-year war in Astana, the three countries said they will use their "influence" to strengthen the truce, without specifying how that would work. The statement signed by the three sponsors also states the agreement paves the way for political talks to be held Feb. 8 in Geneva and welcomed the rebel groups' participation in the U.N.-sponsored talks. Russia, an ally of the Syrian government, and Turkey, a supporter of the opposition, had negotiated the Dec. 30 cease-fire. Iran, a supporter of the government, had approved it.

-- From wire reports